


Love Bites

by MagicGirlinAMuggleWorld



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Banter, Crush Revealed, Crushes, Drabbles, F/M, First Kiss, Flirting, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Humor, I tagged this unresolved romantic tension before i decided to add more chapters, Nerds in Love, Resolved Romantic Tension, Romantic Fluff, Sexual Tension, Sexy, Unresolved Romantic Tension, jily, jily drabble, so now i can also say
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-14
Updated: 2019-05-19
Packaged: 2020-01-13 11:14:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18467809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicGirlinAMuggleWorld/pseuds/MagicGirlinAMuggleWorld
Summary: 7th-year Jily flirting with hella sexual tension. It started as a one-shot, but a few people have asked for more, and who am I to disappoint? At least, this time :-) Two little chapters of these kids trying to pretend they're not head-over-heels, and one where...we'll see!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This little one-shot turned into a tiny multi-chapter because I was having so much fun interacting with my readers about it :-) I am totally open to fanart, podficing, or any other interpretations of my work, if folks are interested.

“All right, Evans?” James asked, sauntering into the Heads’ Office.

Lily was bent over a desk, notepad in front of her, pencil moving gracefully in her hand. She didn’t respond right away, and, for a moment, James just enjoyed watching her work.

Checking in on her had become one of his favorite parts of the day. They hardly ever bickered anymore, it was all good-natured banter these days, plus a bit of teamwork and even the occasional exchange of personal information. They were definitely friends now, if not more.

_If not more._

Sometimes it felt like more, but James couldn't be sure.

He cleared his throat. “What’re you working on?”

To his surprise, Lily slammed her sketchbook shut. “Hmm? Nothing,” she said, too quickly. She stood up and smiled at him, but her cheeks were a bit flushed. “I thought you were tutoring this evening?”

“Two of my third-years have some sort of stomach bug, so I decided to reschedule. Heading to the Great Hall for a late supper, thought I’d check if you’ve eaten.”

“Oh!” Lily’s blushed deepened. “Thanks, Potter, but I ate already. I’m just going to finish up here, but I’ll see you back in the Common Room, right?”

James narrowed his eyes for a moment, then let his face relax into an easy smirk. “Well if there are Head duties to finish, I should stay here and help you.”

“No, no, nothing like that. Just…a project of my own.”

“Ah, something _personal_ , eh?” James waggled his eyebrows, and Lily looked like she was fighting a smile.

“Yes, _personal_ , Potter. Now, go have some supper, and I will talk to you later.” She put one hand on his back to steer him from the office.

But that meant only one hand was holding her sketchbook. So, with what he could only describe as the precision and agility of a _world-class_ athlete, James spun away from her and snatched the book from between her fingers.

He had no intention of opening it – he loved to provoke her, but he’d never disrespect her privacy that way – but _she_ didn’t seem to know that.

She gasped in shock. “Give it back!”

“Nope,” he said grinning. “We share things now, don’t we?”

“Not everything!” Lily cried, lunging for the book. James held it high above his head and laughed.

“I’m hurt, Evans,” he said, pressing his free hand to his chest and poking his full bottom lip out in a pout.

“You will be, if you don’t give it back!” Lily said, her eyebrows raised in warning.

James made a come-and-get-it face and waved the notebook in the air. Lily ran at him and, when he turned away to shield the notebook from her, hopped on his back.

That only made him laugh more. He used one long arm to continue to hold the book out of her reach and wrapped the other around her thigh, securing her to him.

For her safety, of course.

Never mind how much he liked having her there. Right now, they had a game to play.

Thus: “Jeez, Evans, you’re more clingy than Devil’s Snare today,” he said, still laughing.

Lily huffed, mildly indignant. “I’ll show you Devil’s Snare, all right. James, give it back now, or I’ll—”

He noticed her tone and the use of his first name, and he hoped it wasn’t a sign that he’d taken things too far. But she wasn’t screaming at him – in fact, she seemed on the verge of giggling, herself – so he decided to keep pushing.

“You’ll what?” he asked, mischievously. “Hex me? Very unbecoming of our Head Girl, don’t you think?”

“I’ll _bite_ you,” Lily finished emphatically. She had her legs looped around his waist and one arm around his neck, the other flailing for the notebook he held out in front of him.

James froze for a second, thinking of the implications of her words, then forced out a chuckle. “That’s even less appropriate than hexing me, don’t you think? I don’t believe you’ve got it in you.”

“Just give me back my notebook, and you won’t have to find out.”

“You’ve shown me your drawings before, what’s so different this time?” he asked, turning his face a bit so he could see her out of the corner of his eye.

And instead of answering, Lily took that opportunity to sink her teeth into his neck.

“Shit!” James yelped. He flinched and dropped the notebook. “You bit me!”

“Told you I would,” Lily sang. She unwrapped her legs from his waist and hopped down from his back, then bent over to pick up the notebook from the floor, brushing a bit of dust off its cover. As she straightened, she glanced at James over her shoulder, her lips quirking up in a tiny grin.

 _Shit_.

In an instant, James closed the distance between them. He kept his hips angled slightly away from her, lest he embarrass the both of them, but he pressed his chest against her shoulders and let his hands rest gently on her waist. He heard her breath hitch, and a smug smile graced his lips. Lily’s breathing seemed to synch with his as he leaned close to her ear.

“You _bit_ me,” he repeated, softer this time.

He felt rather than heard Lily take a deep breath. She turned slowly to face him, and he let his hands slide gently around her waist, never breaking contact. She clutched her notebook between their bodies and looked up at him, unsure and defiant and playful all at once.

 _And sexy_.

Whatever James thought he saw in her bright green eyes, there was no uncertainty in her voice as she said, “And I’d do it again.”

“Would you?” James asked, hoping he sounded half as confident as she did. He removed one hand from her hip and took hold of the edge of her notebook, but he didn’t pull it from her grip. He bent his head towards hers, cocked to one side, close enough for his lips to brush her cheek. The angle exposed the golden skin of his throat, right beneath his jaw.

Lily swallowed hard, but she gave a quick nod of affirmation. James let out a low chuckle.

“Well, go on, then,” he whispered, giving the notebook a gentle tug. “Like you mean it this time.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Been thinking a lot about these kids flirting during that obvious period where everyone knows they like each other but they're not together for some reason, and this popped into my head. Sexy flirty times in the Heads' office :-) Hope you like it, let me know!


	2. Chapter 2

She didn't bite him again.

She thought about it, and she licked her lips, and watched his Adam’s apple shift as he swallowed.

But a little voice in her head told her that biting really  _wasn't_  an appropriate thing to do to you co-Head prefect, regardless of how strong and smooth and enticing his neck might look.

 _Since when do I find his neck enticing?_  Lily blinked hard.  _I'm losing it._

So, she didn't bite him. Instead, she forced a giggle and said, "Well, I can’t very well do it when you’re  _expecting_  it, can I? That takes the fun out of it.”

She pulled her sketchbook from his loose grasp and turned away from him, tossing her hair over her shoulder as she did. She heard him chuckle, a low rumble that seemed to come from his chest, and she pretended she couldn’t feel his eyes burning hot on her back as she darted from the room.

><><>< 

It took more than a week for things to get back to normal. Normal-ish. Normal enough that she didn’t blush every time she caught him staring at her, smirking like they shared a secret. Normal enough that she could look at him without imagining the feeling of his hand wrapped around her thigh.

Not normal enough that she could stop thinking about his neck, though. His  _neck_ , of all the bloody things to fixate on. The muscles right beneath his jaw that stood out when he clenched his teeth. That pulse point she’d noticed throbbing in his throat, right where her teeth had landed.

_Shit._

But they were finally friends. And friends didn't lust after each other’s necks, last week’s events notwithstanding.

What friends did was support each other at Quidditch. So, on Saturday afternoon, Lily pulled her thoughts away from James’ neck (although the scarlet of Gryffindor’s uniforms did look  _gorgeous_  against his golden-brown skin) and prepared to go cheer her House to victory over Slytherin.

She painted red and gold streaks on her cheeks and arms and tied a scarlet bow around her braid. In contrast to how perfect it looked on James, scarlet clashed horribly with Lily’s hair. But fandom took precedence over fashion, and sacrifices had to be made. That said, she didn’t begrudge herself a bit of mascara and a coppery eyeshadow that brought out her eyes before she went to meet Dorcas to watch the match.

Lily joined the rest of the students in the stands right as Madame Hooch blew her whistle to call the teams to the pitch. The Slytherins hissed menacingly as their team flew out in an “S” formation, and the Gryffindors roared as their captain did a loop-de-loop on his broom and pointed finger guns at the crowd.

He was such a show-off, and a corny one at that. But Merlin, Lily loved to watch him in the air.

Besides, who was she to complain about him being corny when she was carrying a hand-made sign that read,  _Snakes Can't Even Fly?_

Whatever. She thought it was funny.

James thought so, too, if the way he paused on his broom and looked her way, lips twitching, was any indication. Lily grinned and winked, even though he probably couldn’t see her face.

 _Friends_.

 _What’s better than a friend who gets your sense of humor?_   _Nothing, that's what._

That’s why she was smiling so hard. Obviously.

After nearly three hours of intense play, Gryffindor had a brilliant come-from-behind win when their new Seeker, Astraeus Jones, nicked the Snitch from right out from under a Slytherin Beater to end the game, 240-110. James scored six goals, including a spectacular shot where he came from behind the goal posts like Muggle hockey players do, drawing their Keeper far out of position before flipping the Quaffle into the farthest hoop with ease. Marlene McKinnon, another Gryffindor Chaser, scored three goals of her own to keep the match interesting.

Sure, it was only the first game of the year, but beating Slytherin always felt as good as winning the House Cup. As the Slytherin team slunk away, Gryffindor fans stormed the field, screaming and waving red and gold flags.

Lily, Dorcas, Remus, and Peter were among them. A crowd was forming around the team, and they had lifted Jones onto their shoulders and were shouting, "Hip, hip, hurrah!" James was laughing and squeezing Marlene’s shoulders, and Gryffindor’s Keeper was performing an extremely energetic celebratory dance.

Dorcas pulled Marlene away from James and hugged her giddily, and Peter began leading the rowdy students in the Gryffindor fight song they’d made up last year. Sirius grabbed Remus and swung him around, despite the latter’s excessive height, and they both were laughing as Remus regained his feet.

James noticed Lily watching them, and he grinned and raised his eyebrows.

And in that moment, she did the only thing that made sense—she ran toward him and leapt into his arms, letting out a whoop of glee as she did.

He let out a whoop of his own and then pressed his lips to hers, hard and fast, before spinning her in a circle just like Sirius had done to Remus.

It was all so quick, for a second, Lily wasn't sure it had even happened. People all around her were cheering, but she was pretty sure that was still Quidditch-related. Astraeus Jones was back on his feet and had run the length of the pitch holding a huge Gryffindor flag. Some fifth-year girls were doing what looked like Muggle cheerleading moves. Remus and Sirius had linked elbows with Peter and were yelling and swaying along with the made-up fight song. Dorcas and Marlene were doing a victory tango.

And James was still holding Lily, his arms locked behind her lower back, a wide smile on his face. He released her slowly, and she slid down his body until her feet were back on the ground.

Only then, as she continued to stare up at him with her lips parted, did he seemed to realize what he’d done.

"Oh!" He reached up and mussed his hair. "Shit, I'm sorry, Evans. Got caught up in the moment. I—sorry. Didn’t mean to do that.”

That's what he said. But he was looking at her like he'd looked at her in the prefect’s office last week. The way he'd tried not to look at her on the week since.

And now she was back to thinking about his bloody neck.

She took a deep breath and licked her lips. Then she marshaled every bit of Gryffindor courage she could find inside her and spoke: “Well, maybe you should’ve.”

James blinked. “I—should’ve what?”

 _You can do this, Lily_. She lifted her chin and gave him a sly smile. “Meant to do it.”

“Meant to—I should’ve?” James repeated weakly.

Someone jostled Lily from behind, and she stumbled forward, into James. Her hands landed on his chest, broad and firm under his Quidditch robes. Her eyes were level with his neck, that perfect, golden neck. She glanced up and saw him staring down at her with wide eyes.

“Well, I thought you told me,” she said quietly, so quietly she hoped he could hear her over the noise of the celebration, “that if a person’s going to do something like that, they ought to do it like they mean it.”

“Did I? Well—yes, I suppose, I said that, yes,” he stammered.

Lily rose up on her toes before her courage faded. “All right, then,” she whispered, as she took his earlobe gently between her teeth. He groaned and grabbed her waist, but she gave his ear one last nip and pulled away, dropping back to her flat feet.

“There,” she said, hoping her cheeks weren’t pink as she peeked up at him through her eyelashes. “I meant it that time. Now your turn.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More to come :-) I'm extending this story cuz I love y'all, so let me know if you're still enjoying it! xo


	3. Chapter 3

James did not kiss Lily right then.

And Sirius Black was to blame.

James loved Sirius. Truly, he adored him. That went without saying. The man was his best friend, his partner-in-crime, the platonic love of his life. There were few people in the world who could rival Sirius in terms of James’ esteem.

That said, at this _particular_ moment, James was mentally running through a list of the most irritating hexes and jinxes he could think of, and he was seriously considering using one on the man he called brother.

Because Lily had been standing there, looking at James with just a hint of a dare in her eyes, and James had been ready to do it. He was going to _kiss_ her. On purpose this time. Like he meant it, because Merlin knows he did.

And then Sirius had run up, shoved himself between them, and thrown an arm over each of their shoulders.

"Fucking brilliant!" he’d crowed. “I wish nothing but the best for Reg in general, of course, but his face when Jones grabbed the Snitch from behind Rookwood’s back? Priceless!” He burst into barking laughter.

James had been too shocked to laugh with him. Lily managed a giggle, but her cheeks were red and she didn’t meet James’ eyes as she extracted herself from under Sirius’ arm.

“Brilliant,” she echoed mechanically, and the smile she gave Sirius looked frozen, awkward. She glanced back at James and waved half-heartedly as she turned to join Dorcas and Marlene. “See you around, Potter.”

James made a strangled sound in response and raised his hand in a feeble wave of his own. He watched Lily walk over to her girlfriends, and he imagined this is what it felt like to find yourself close enough to touch a unicorn only to startle it before you got a chance to pet its silky mane.

He leveled his most menacing glare at Sirius. _Conjunctivitus curse?_ he pondered, before quickly shaking his head. _Nah, too harsh. Tripping Jinx? Hardly effective when he’s standing still. Bat-bogey hex? That might work…_

Sirius didn’t seem to notice he’d interrupted anything at all, nor that James was contemplating the propriety of hexing one’s best friend in the middle of an open field for all to see. “Prongs, this calls for a party!” he declared, giving James’ shoulders a shake. “Let’s get to Hogsmeade! We need provisions!”

James sighed. “Sure,” he said grumpily. “Not like there’s anything else I’d rather be doing right now.”

….

James had to admit – the party was epic, even by Gryffindor standards.

Students of all ages ate and sang and danced until they nearly passed out where they stood. Peter led the crowd in a few more choruses of the fight song. Mary and Remus taught their fellow seventh-years some mash-up of wizarding and Muggle drinking games that involved tossing gobstones into another person’s firewhiskey. Sirius played Queen's newest single, _We Are the Champions_ , over and over (or was it _on, and on, and on, and on_?). James, ever the mother hen, made sure no one under sixteen drank anything stronger than butterbeer and sent the first- and second-years to bed at midnight.

And still the party raged on.

Right up until Professor McGonagall stumbled through the portrait hole in her tartan dressing gown, looking ready to commit murder.

"THAT’S _ENOUGH_!” she roared, in a decent approximation of their house’s signature lion. "I'VE TRIED TO BE TOLERANT, BUT YOU LOT’VE FOUND THE LIMITS OF MY PATIENCE!”

James had never thought the Professor particularly patient to begin with, but he suspected now was not the time to say so.

Sirius hastily lifted the needle from the Queen record before the song could start again. Astraeus, the Seeker who’d won them the match, flinched and fumbled the bottle of butterbeer he’d been holding. It shattered as it hit the ground.

McGonagall shot him a scathing look. “I’m as happy with today’s win as any of you,” she declared, letting her dark eyes dart across the huddled students before they came to rest on Lily and James. “But this? This is absurd! And led by _my_ Head Students, no less!”

“We’re sorry, Professor!” Lily said quickly, and she looked it. She hated disappointing authority figures. “The time just got away from us!”

“We didn’t mean to wake you,” James added earnestly, hoping he could smooth things over with a spot of charm. “We’re just so _proud_ of how well we played today. First step in bringing home the House Cup for Gryffindor, eh?”

Sirius and a few other brave students let out a quick cheer, but cut it short when McGonagall narrowed her eyes.

But James thought he saw her lips curve up just _slightly_ before she pressed them into a hard line.

“Potter, Evans. I expect you two to clean this up _immediately_ ,” she said curtly. “And the rest of you, go _straight_ to bed. Now!”

Students scurried towards their respective staircases in nearly single file lines, some grabbing a biscuit or two on their way, giving them the appearance of ants marching back to their hills after raiding a picnic. McGonagall gave the stragglers a withering stare, then turned on her heel in a swirl of her dressing gown. With one final “Hmph!” she climbed out of the portrait hole and slammed it behind her.

James cringed as she left, bracing himself for another scolding – but it never came. After a second, he relaxed his shoulders and chanced a look at Lily.

She was looking back at him, with a mixture of amusement and… _hope_? in her expression. But as soon as his eyes caught hers, she looked away.

“Let’s get to this. Shouldn’t take us long,” she said, gesturing to the evidence of the night’s celebration.

“Right,” James agreed, wondering what she’d been thinking moments before. He ruffled his hair. “Do you want to gather the bottles and any leftover biscuits, and I’ll start vanishing the rubbish?”

“Sounds good,” Lily said, still not meeting his gaze. She nodded firmly, as if confirming something, and set to work.

They worked in silence, James cleaning up the spilled butterbeer after he finished vanishing the rubbish, and Lily returning the furniture to its rightful place after she finished with the biscuits.  They were done in no time at all, and as James absently dusted his hands against his jeans, Lily plopped on the couch with a sigh.

“Whew!” she said, giving James a warm smile. “That wasn't so bad, right, Head Boy?”

“No, it wasn’t,” he said, drifting forward as if her smile were a flame and he was a stupid, helpless, moth. He reached the couch and slowly lowered himself next to her, hoping he was not about to get burnt.

She glanced up at him, eyes wide, and bit her bottom lip. James wanted to run his thumb across that lip, and stroke her jaw, and take her lips between his own, and…

He took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair, turning his face away from hers, his eyes away from her mouth. When he felt more composed, he looked back at her with a crooked smile. “You're not upset, though?”

She cocked her head and her brow furrowed slightly before her expression eased into a half-smile. “About being told off by McGonagall, you mean? Nah.”

She was looking at him strangely, like she was holding something back.

It was that look that prompted him to ask, “Then are you upset about something else?”

Lily blushed fiercely, like she’d been caught in a little white lie. “No,” she said quickly. Then she shrugged. “Not _upset_ , anyway.”

James scooted closer to her and put a hand on her knee. She shivered and looked up at him, her pupils darkening her green eyes. “Tell me what’s wrong,” James said.

“I'm _not_ upset,” she said seriously. “I’m not sure what I’m thinking, honestly. I just…was remembering how we got interrupted before. And now…” she trailed off.

“Before? After the match?”

“Yeah.” Lily nodded, still blushing. She looked down at James’ hand resting on her knee and gently placed her hand on top of his.

James swallowed hard. “When you told me to kiss you like I meant it?”

“Yeah.”

“And now…” James moved his hand from under hers to cup her cheek as he echoed her unfinished sentence. “And now,” he repeated, holding her gaze, “is it too late?”

Her cheek curved under James’ hand as she grinned. “No,” she whispered.

“Good,” James whispered back, as he lowered his mouth to hers.

She was still smiling, so his first kiss landed on her teeth as much as her lips, but they adjusted quickly. She sighed and closed her eyes, tilting her head slightly so their mouths fit together like pieces of a puzzle. James opened his mouth to her and she took the invitation, letting her tongue sweep across his. He moaned slightly and she slid her hands around his waist, then under his jumper, up his back, and then—

She pulled away. “Wait, what are we doing?” she asked breathlessly.

“I—what?” James was panting, too. “Do you want to stop?”

“No. I mean, I don’t know.” She shook her head. “I just—we’re friends now. We _work_ together.”

“We do. And we do it so well, don’t we?” He gave her a playful smile and leaned in for another kiss, but she just bit her bottom lip and looked up with him at worried eyes. With a sigh, James shifted farther away from her and tugged on his hair, trying to keep the frustration out of his voice. “Evans, I thought we—I thought you— _you_ started this, you know.”

“I know!” She sounded just as frustrated as he did. “I'm just confused.”

James spread his hands helplessly. “About?”

Lily stared at him. Then she inched forward, slowly, tentatively, until she was practically in his lap, and traced feather-light fingertips along his cheekbone. James took a deep breath.

And she leaned forward and kissed his cheek, where her fingers had been. She began working her way down, pressing her lips to his cheekbone, then his jaw, and James grabbed her hips, pulling her the rest of the way into his lap. She giggled and nuzzled against his ear before lightly grazing her teeth along his throat.

James groaned and leaned back, when all he really wanted to do is melt under her pretty mouth. “Evans,” he said hoarsely. “I need to know. What are you confused about?”

She hmmed softly, then ducked her head to kiss his neck one more time. He closed his eyes, mind blurry. And then, as she pulled back, Lily murmured a quiet sentence against his jaw: “I think I fancy you.”

James’ eyes flew open and his eyebrows shot up. His brought his hands gently to her thighs, scared to move too quickly and shatter this fragile moment. He tried to keep his voice even as he asked, “You think?”

“Mmhmm.” She blushed and nodded, her eyes searching his nervously. Whatever she found must have satisfied her, because suddenly, she smiled. “More than think, I suppose. I do.”

“You _do_?” James squeezed her thighs before remembering he was trying to remain calm. But he couldn’t stop the smile spreading across his face.

Lily nodded, and James grabbed her face and kissed her, hard, then again, then a third time.

He was beaming when he pulled his mouth from hers. Lily laced their fingers together and squeezed his hand, smiling up at him with an expression of pure pleasure. She looked so beautiful – her pupils still wide, her cheeks flushed, and her lips red and slightly parted – and she was _here_ kissing _him_. For a second, James wondered whether this was all the best dream he’d ever had.

“Will you say it again, Evans?” he asked softly, and he hoped he didn’t sound like he was begging. She looked up at him, puzzled, and he brushed a kiss across her forehead, and then another over those red lips.

“Tell me again how you fancy me. Like you mean it this time.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's the end! I hope I've resolved the tension to your satisfaction, friends! I had a lot of fun with this, thanks for encouraging me to extend my little one-shot. Please let me know what you think of the ending! xoxo, MagicGirl


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